


Last Hurrah

by Miraphina Atherton (mew_tsubaki)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Age Difference, Angst, F/M, mentions of PennyPercy & Lucissa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-13
Updated: 2017-09-13
Packaged: 2018-12-27 16:32:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12084912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mew_tsubaki/pseuds/Miraphina%20Atherton
Summary: Certain things cannot be taught in books. Penelope knows this well; she's learned a lot from being with Percy. But Percy can't teach her everything, either. Penny has to learn about life and love the hard way, somehow. The most vile and unexpected person steps up to that plate, though, and Penny knows that what has been taught cannot be untaught.





	Last Hurrah

**Author's Note:**

> Note: This was done for the 2010 forum-wide competition in the HPFC. The Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not to me.
> 
> House: Slytherin
> 
> Week: Seven (seventh & final challenge)
> 
> Challenge: Break at least one canon pairing with a given pairing. Given: Lucius Malfoy/Penelope Clearwater. Breaks: BOTH Lucius/Narcissa and Penelope/Percy.

Being with Percy Weasley was a _task_.

Ravenclaw Penelope Clearwater was bright and knew her way around problems. She could solve things as readily as any other person who could think on her feet. But it didn't mean she liked surprises.

Becoming a Prefect during fifth year with Percy was nice. It gave them something else in common other than their personalities, since they weren't in the same House. Staying a Prefect into sixth year proved annoying as Percy's little sister, Ginny, chanced upon one of their stolen snogs in an empty classroom. That drove Penny nuts.

Percy's family was _everywhere_. They wouldn't be able to escape them with the last of his siblings at school!

Actually, when the cat fell out of the bag, Penny had been rather miffed with Percy. She didn't have long to stay mad at him, though, when she found Granger in the library and the young Gryffindor babbled about the Chamber of Secrets and basilisks. Because then Penny had had to step very cautiously as she and Granger used her mirror to watch out for said basilisk.

Well, _that_ turned out so well for her. She and Granger ended up petrified for the rest of the school year.

Penny didn't even get a chance to relax and stew over coming out as "Percy's girlfriend." Her mind was as numb and stiff as her body. Penelope didn't even remember what she'd been thinking by the time Professor Sprout revived all the petrified victims with the Mandrake juice. All she knew was that… Oh, she wasn't just Percy's girlfriend. She wasn't just a title; Percy was there with happy _tears_ in his eyes when she awoke.

And yet all Penny ever felt was that she _was_ "Percy's girlfriend." It bugged her and distracted her, so she didn't realize she'd been about to walk into someone while doing one of her Prefect rounds of the castle on one of the last days of her sixth year.

"Be careful" came a clipped tone.

The gruff voice caused Penny to look up and blanch. The voice belonged to a tall wizard with white–blond hair and pressed, expensive-looking black robes. He carried a cane tipped with a silver snake head. His gray eyes pierced her own dark ones and made her feel so insignificant that she had to fight the nervous urge to twirl one of her dirty blonde curls.

He sniffed. "Excuse me." He looked as though he were trying to fight down a sneer as he walked past her.

Penny snapped back to her senses then. She _was_ a Prefect after all, and… "Sir, could I help you? We really can't have just anyone roaming the school halls, certainly not with what has happened this year."

He halted and turned back to her. "Miss…"

"Penelope Clearwater."

"Miss Clearwater," the wizard started again, "I happen to be Lucius Malfoy, one of the school's governors. As I just came from an audience with the headmaster, I daresay I have business here."

Her cheeks flushed. "Oh! I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy," she apologized, realizing this was Draco Malfoy's father. "I didn't mean to be rude. Please have a nice day—er, nice summer."

Mr. Malfoy pursed his lips and gave her a once-over. "No rudeness received, Miss Clearwater. Good day." He walked away, his over-robe billowing a bit behind him.

Penny mindlessly finished her rounds and joined Percy in the Great Hall for supper after. Honestly, she felt a little better after meeting Mr. Malfoy. She wasn't "Percy Weasley's girlfriend;" she was "Miss Clearwater." She wouldn't forget that any time soon, nor would she ever shake the burning imprint of his severe, gray eyes on her.

* * *

At the end of Draco's second year, Lucius was absolutely livid.

Delivering that diary of the Dark Lord's to the Weasley girl hadn't worked out at all. Potter had been there again to save the day. Damn it, Potter was always there!

As if that weren't bad enough, Lucius had gone to speak with that daft man, Dumbledore. Lucius ended up walking out of his office even more infuriated—Dumbledore seemed to be onto him. But then Potter had caught up with Lucius and his house-elf, Dobby. One insinuation led to another, and Lucius was ready to storm angrily out of the castle.

Then Potter had tricked him into freeing Dobby. Potter had _lost him his house-elf_!

Though he wanted to, the Malfoy father couldn't harm a hair on that ruddy Potter's head. Dobby _protected_ him! Lucius had had to walk away with his head hanging in shame! Malfoys didn't do shame.

The walk to exit the castle helped very little to calm his fury. Some Ravenclaw witch almost walked into him, adding a little to his temper. "Be careful," he said in a short voice.

The sound of his voice made the witch—ah, a Prefect—look up and blanch. His gray eyes pierced her own dark ones, and she involuntarily shrank away from him slightly.

He sniffed. Certainly he wasn't _that_ intimidating. "Excuse me." When she didn't say anything, he moved past her.

"Sir, could I help you? We really can't have just anyone roaming the school halls, especially not with what has happened this year," she called after him.

He halted and turned back to her. "Miss…"

"Penelope Clearwater."

"Miss Clearwater," he started again, "I happen to be Lucius Malfoy, one of the school's governors. As I just came from an audience with the headmaster, I daresay I have business here."

Her cheeks flushed. "Oh! I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy," she apologized. "I didn't mean to be rude. Please have a nice day—er, nice summer."

Lucius pursed his lips and gave her a once-over. She was polite and pretty. It was a shame she was being taught by such filth at this school. "No rudeness received, Miss Clearwater. Good day." He walked away, his over-robe billowing a bit behind him. He didn't give Penelope Clearwater much thought again.

* * *

Penny spent most of her summer communing with Percy via owl, but her mind was preoccupied. She couldn't help it. Lucius Malfoy's eyes and presence were things a girl didn't forget easily.

She felt a little guilty, as she _was_ with Percy, but she chided herself, saying she wasn't doing anything horribly wrong. She wasn't acting on any feelings— _I don't have any_ feelings, she often thought—and she still liked Percy quite a bit.

When the end of summer and the beginning of her seventh and final year drew close, Penny had a nagging feeling in her gut that she _needed_ to go to Diagon Alley sooner rather than later. It was strange; she'd never had such an instinct…though she often pushed the time before the basilisk out of her mind. She hadn't told anyone, not even Percy, that she'd felt something bad was going to happen then.

Now she understood…maybe just a little…her gut feeling. It didn't predict bad things happening. It just predicted _big_ things happening. First, there was the basilisk.

This time, it was bumping into Mr. Malfoy again…though luckily not literally as when she'd first met him.

Penny told her parents that she wanted to get her school shopping done early. She insisted that if they did it earlier, then she could have the rest of the summer to herself to spend as she pleased.

So when she saw him, it didn't register at first. Her mother had been counting off items they still had to buy, and her father had been carrying most of the bags. Her Muggle father usually carried the bags; he was still a little frightened by magic, though Penny and her mother were both witches. But her father was carrying too much today, and he dropped most of the packages.

The seventeen-year-old stooped with her mother to help her father…and she froze. She saw past a detailed, pressed robe. She didn't pay any attention to the freshly polished shoes. She saw a long black cane. As her eyes followed the cane's body upward, she gasped. It was topped with a silver snake head.

It was easy enough to shake off her parents. They let her wander the Wizarding road on her own, and she was very grateful for that. When Penny caught up to him, she followed him into the Apothecary.

"Hello, Mr. Malfoy." She smiled brightly as he turned around and seemed to recognize her.

"Ah, Miss…Clearwater, correct?"

Despite being in the House famed for its intelligent inhabitants, Penny felt bloody stupid for nodding like a little child. "Yes, thank you for remembering. So…good summer, I take it?"

His lips twisted together into a smile-like sneer, as if he were recalling an inside joke. "Something like that. You look ready for school."

"Uh, yes… It's my last year," she stated with a frown as she peered at the purchases he was stuffing into a basket. It was obvious he was buying up Draco's year's worth of potion supplies. "But I'm rather looking forward to it. I'll be learning to Apparate, which is nice since it'll make travelling so much easier."

"Indeed." Mr. Malfoy heard maybe half of what she said as they moved around the store, but he let her prattle on. Penny didn't ask why he did, but she liked it. She couldn't talk this way to Percy; if she had gone on about her frets for her N.E.W.T. Potions exam at the end of the year, Percy would've stopped her so he could go study himself. It wouldn't occur to Percy just to listen.

When he finished in the Apothecary, she accompanied him into the Stationers. She bought two bottles of ink and a bit of parchment. However, though she spied a pretty, pale blue Color-Changing paper, she couldn't buy it. She still had to get a couple of her books, and she had little money left…

There was a _**plink**_ ahead of her. An extra silver Sickle fell out of Mr. Malfoy's sleeve. He _appeared_ not to have noticed… His gray eyes fell upon the very paper she so desired. "That's a durable-looking scroll of parchment" was his only comment. He moved on to the next row.

Penny, stunned, wondered… She picked up the coin— _Finders, keepers_ , she thought with a smile—and bought the scroll, and she still had plenty of money remaining for the rest of her supplies. For the rest of Mr. Malfoy's, Lucius', visit in the store, she kept quiet, happy enough to present him with her company. Upon exiting the shop, she summoned all her strength and held him back by his arm. "Thank you, Mr. Malfoy."

He smirked. "For what? Enjoy your seventh year, Miss Clearwater."

* * *

He hadn't known she'd reappear at the Apothecary. He hadn't known he'd _remember_ her as she followed him through the store and then into the Stationers. He…he hadn't expected to let himself listen to her prattle on about whatever came to mind.

By all means, she wasn't anything spectacular. Penelope Clearwater was striking, physically; she had dark, curly, blonde hair and dark blue eyes that were near black and doe-like. Personality-wise, Penelope was like any other Ravenclaw, obsessed with her grades and doing well in school. She had a serious passion for Quidditch, too, though she didn't play herself. She was experienced with Charms; she even demonstrated by expertly using a non-verbal incantation to summon a Bluebell Flame to back up her claim. She hoped to work someday under the Minister for Magic, as well.

She…was an average witch. She showed her feminine side when expressing interest in a scroll of parchment, but—like many others who didn't come from the typical pureblood wealth—she couldn't afford it, what with everything else she needed.

He didn't know what made him do it. _Just pretend nothing happened_ , he told himself as a Sickle fell from his hand. He acted as if nothing had happened, and Penelope bought the paper. But she wanted to make clear that she knew it was him. Outside the shop, she stopped him and said, "Thank you, Mr. Malfoy."

He smirked, ignoring the fact that it was… _nice_ to see her smile that way. "For what? Enjoy your seventh year, Miss Clearwater."

And she did. Before Lucius knew it—he was too busy with a bloody hippogriff attack on his son at the beginning of Draco's third year—he was out-and-about planning things for the return of the Dark Lord and—

"Pene—Miss Clearwater?" Lucius was stunned to find her interning for the Minister for Magic. He, himself, was involved with the Ministry as well as Hogwarts, but he hadn't believed for one moment that he would ever see this girl in the Ministry.

"Oh…Mr. Malfoy." She appeared to have wanted to use his first name, but he hadn't given her that permission; it was one thing for him, the adult, to call her "Penelope," though he wouldn't. He had to stop associating with her. She was a half-blood at best, and his kind only associated with other purebloods or those who'd come from a once-noble, once-fully pureblood family. And he'd never heard of the Clearwater family.

He hesitated. It was this summer— _this summer_ —when things would be set in motion. By the end of the year, Lord Voldemort would be reestablished and ready to rid the world of Mudbloods and blood-traitors and despicable half-bloods…

Penelope had a bright grin on her face, like the one he'd seen once before. "I'm working towards a position directly under the Minister," she stated, carrying a stack of files in her arms. Lucius involuntarily walked with her. "Oh, it gets hard sometimes. My ex-boyfriend, Percy, is working here, too, and he wants the same job."

"'Percy'…?"

"Percy Weasley," she grunted. "Biggest prat you'll ever meet. That family's so intrusive, too. I'm glad I broke it off."

Lucius was happy to hear someone else disliked that family of blood-traitors, too, even if it was for different reasons. "So you're enjoying the single life of a Ministry worker then?"

Penelope's mouth twitched into an unsure frown. "I suppose… I'll see you around, Mr. Malfoy."

Even with the Quidditch World Cup approaching, some unidentifiable force urged Lucius back to the Ministry whenever he found time. And time's a luxury when one's a Death Eater planning a revolt.

* * *

Seventh year had gone exceptionally well for Penny. She graduated Hogwarts with amazing grades, so many N.E.W.T.s, and a strong idea of what she wanted to do. She also had an idea of whom she wanted to see at work. It wasn't Percy.

Actually, she and Percy had hit a rough patch. They were all fine and dandy until she mentioned how she'd bought her expensive parchment scroll _and_ the rest of her books.

"I, uh, was with an acquaintance who made me a loan," she admitted to Percy towards the end of the year.

He froze, immediately getting jealous. "Who? And when?"

She brushed him off. "It was no one, Perce. It was before the school year, when I was in Diagon Alley."

"Who, Penny?"

"Mr. Lucius Malfoy, if you must know," she answered with a glare as Percy stood and began to pace their corner of the library.

"Malfoy? _Malfoy?_ Are you mental, Penny? The Malfoys have never been any good. I told you once: My family doesn't get along _at all_ with them. It even goes back to my parents' school days and my father's first days at the Ministry!"

"He's not a bad man, Percy," Penny stupidly retorted. It only further angered her boyfriend.

"And how do you know that? Did he buy you flowers? Say you were the prettiest little witch he'd ever met?"

"You're being absurd. He's a married man, Perce. And I said he's just an acquaintance, no more than a friend."

"Oh, he's a friend now? Penny, he's _male_ , he only has one thing on his mind."

She scoffed, offended. "Like you, I reckon? You know what, Percy? You really should spend more time on your Head Boy duties, seeing as you have plenty of free time with no girlfriend now." She walked away before it could register with him that she'd broken up with him. She stormed out of the library and back to Ravenclaw Tower, hating that Percy was right about one thing: Percy was right to be jealous. Penny _did_ see Lucius as a kind of friend. And being suddenly single, she indulged in thinking about the what-ifs if Lucius weren't married or if she happened to be just a wee bit older or if she could see more of him.

She did see more of him.

The witch interned at the Ministry of Magic, trying to work her way up to a position under the Minister. When she saw Lucius there, Percy's words floated to the front of her mind. But she didn't see Lucius as someone evil. She grew friendlier and friendlier with him as they "chanced" upon each other at work. She didn't really know what he did at the Ministry, but she didn't really care. All she cared about was the intense feeling in her gut that turned into butterflies in her stomach. It was those butterflies that let her know she was going to spend even a minute with Lucius.

Months later, when the attack at the Quidditch World Cup happened, Penelope fretted. Lucius was supposed to be there with his family… What if he'd been injured in all the commotion? What if he'd been—oh, Merlin—captured?

Her heart almost exploded when she saw him skulking around the Department of Mysteries in December. He…he was alive. He wasn't hurt, he wasn't maimed, he wasn't any of the things she'd horribly imagined. He was alive and well and searching for something on this level, maybe. "Are you okay?"

Penny had spooked him, but he relaxed some when he recognized it was her. "Penelope… Yes, I'm fine. You heard about the attack, then."

"Yes, you said you were going. I was so scared! Why didn't you contact me? I thought we were friends!" She stopped, knowing she'd said too much. Neither of them had ever put a title to their relationship, though on Penny's side she had started to feel more for him… _No! He's just…just Lucius, a mate_. But she found that she constantly had to remind herself of that as of late.

Lucius frowned, then sadly smiled. "Things get the better of me. Matters of…utmost importance worm their way to the top of my 'to do' list." He gingerly placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm fine, Penelope."

She glared at him, summoning the same courage from a year ago when she'd thanked him. "Fine, my foot!" It was either her gut or her courage or that nagging interest in being something more to him that made her do it. She pulled that hand on her shoulder behind her back and drew him down, kissing him fiercely. He resisted at first, but she was stubborn and didn't give up. Finally, he slackened and clasped his hands at the small of her back, returning her affections.

When they broke apart, he had a dazed look in his eyes. His frown returned. "Penelope…"

"So what? I know all the strings attached, but still…" With those words, she sealed her fate, and the affair began.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy was a man of luxury with nearly everything in life. He had the strong, untainted lineage. He had a family, a good wife, a superb son, and a master of the Dark Arts about to be reborn… Now was not the time to be distracted by silly things. This was the pivotal time. Lord Voldemort would be reborn soon, and there was also the matter of the weapon the Dark Lord had said would be found in the Department of Mysteries…

Lucius didn't have a mistress.

Yet here was Penelope, pretty Penelope, ready and willing. The look on her face clearly showed she was in love with him. It was why he'd taken so long to see her again after the World Cup. He didn't want to screw things up… But she was determined… She was brave, brilliant… She kissed in a way Narcissa never could. His marriage to Narcissa was one of convenience and slight affection.

Penelope stirred the passion inside him.

When he first started seeing her for more than just an exchange of words, his mind was filled with two things: succeeding for the Dark Lord and for Penelope. The two things were almost equal in importance in his mind. His family was a top priority, too…but… _Agh, things are becoming too complicated_ , he warned himself after Voldemort was revived.

Potter was trying to get people to believe that Voldemort was back and that certain people, like Lucius, were Death Eaters. No one believed him. Some of that distrust was secured monetarily by Lucius, but many were already inclined to believe that Voldemort had been defeated a long time ago.

Penelope was one of them. As smart a girl as she was, she believed her heart and therefore believed him. It pained him a little when he ended up betraying her trust at the end of Draco's fifth year and was caught. It was unavoidable. That many Ministry officials in one place where he was fighting alongside his fellow Death Eaters—one would have to be Imperiused not to see that Lucius was a servant of the Dark Lord.

Second to the ache of having lied to Penelope was the humiliation and pain of imprisonment in Azkaban. And he was stuck there until someone could set him free.

* * *

Percy was right. Again.

She was more than friends with Lucius, and he was more than just a wizard. He _was_ a bad man… No, he wasn't! He wasn't a bad man, just—just a Death Eater! And what did that matter, really, when she loved him?

Good Merlin, she was sure she'd never sounded so pathetic.

But she couldn't trust him again. No, she _shouldn't_. She wanted to, though. That first kiss proved she meant something to him, and, to her knowledge, Death Eaters didn't care about anyone. And Lucius had a family! And her! So he wasn't a bad man, just a wizard led astray by dreams of power…

The year of his imprisonment was the longest one of her life.

She wasn't ever going to work for the Minister. With Fudge sacked and Rufus Scrimgeour made the new Minister for Magic, Penny was resigned to the Office of Magical Maintenance. It wasn't quite the horrible job others made it out to be, but it wasn't a glamorous one either. It was a step above being fired, in Penny's opinion, being forced to clean up little mishaps around the Ministry workplace.

Then, suddenly, Scrimgeour was dead. Death Eaters and purebloods were taking over. Voldemort was creating a new regime after freeing all of his followers from Azkaban. Lucius was free and a pawn of the Dark Lord again. Penny could see Lucius again.

When she saw him once more before the Battle of Hogwarts, he seemed unsure about their relationship. She didn't let it bother her too much as they spent one more night together, in a kind of last night of defiance, for, after it was all over, either he would be dead or he would return to his wife…

He survived. But Narcissa was still not enough. Penny would continue to fill his wife's void in private. She would never have to leave Lucius' side again. Through being acquitted of his crimes as a consequence of renouncing his loyalty to Voldemort, through Draco's wedding, through the delivery of Lucius' only grandson…

Penelope was there, and Percy nor Narcissa nor anyone else would have a say about it.

**Author's Note:**

> Even I'm shocked that I made this work… :O But it was FUN! I've been rereading the books, so I vividly remember Penny. And Lucius…Lucius! I love him, so it's always great to write him!
> 
> Thanks for reading, and please review!
> 
> -mew-tsubaki :3
> 
> Thanks as always to Morghen for beta'ing! XD Also, thanks to papa mew, too, for looking this over for me. ;D
> 
> 2017 note: Ah, yes. Not a bad way to end the competition, writing this piece, but I still feel that, 7 yrs later and with the comp long over, this fic suffered the most when it came to dealing with the comp's word limits. This edited version is well over the upper word-count, but I still feel as tho I just barely cleared my throat (esp considering how nowadays 6K-7K words feels more "complete" a oneshot to me). Ah, well. Not too shabby. The only thing—is Penny blonde or brunette, brown eyes or blue? I've seen both listed in various, reliable places, and I…give up. That was why I compromised when editing, giving her dirty blonde hair and dark blue eyes. XD Oh, gods… Details matter to people who are slightly OCD. X_X


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